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Awesome puzzle game now available for almost any mobile device.

On Tuesday, Digital Gamecraft released both Demolish! Pairs 1.0 for Android and Demolish! Pairs 1.2 for iOS. This pair of releases represents a recommitment to this product that is enjoyed by game players on a daily basis.
Demolish! Pairs 1.0 for Android is the first release on the Android platform, after numerous requests, and it runs on 99.7% of Android tablets and phones.
Demolish! Pairs 1.2 for iOS is a long-awaited update release that adds support for the latest iOS devices, including the iPhone X, and resolves compatibility issues with iOS 11.
The goal of Demolish! Pairs is to remove pairs of adjacent, matching blocks until the entire board is cleared. Each time a pair of blocks is removed, the blocks above (if any) drop down and empty columns are filled by pushing the remaining columns together.

Release Date

The release date, September 11, is significant, if somewhat coincidental. (We decided to release the Android version on that date, and the Apple approval of the iOS version just happened to arrive later on the same day.)
Demolish! Pairs began life as a secondary project in the early years of Digital Gamecraft. After many years of discussing the idea, we started actual game design in August 1999, and we completed the first playable (Windows) prototype shortly thereafter. A couple of years later, we made the decision to proceed with Demolish! (as it was known at the time) as a primary development project, and we were making good progress for a few weeks.
The original design theme was an actual building that was being demolished brick by brick, and the gameplay was fun. However, the events that occurred on that date 17 years ago suddenly made the idea of tearing down a building very disturbing, and it became clear immediately that the game could not continue along the same path. We initially renamed the project to Diminish, making the destruction as abstract as possible, before finally shelving the whole thing for almost a decade.
In early 2011, we picked up the project again, deciding to continue with the abstract design and target mobile devices, but to return to the original name. We had a number of different play mechanics that we were implementing, but determined that the one with selecting only pairs of blocks was both unique and the most obviously skillful, so we focused on that particular mechanic. Demolish! Pairs was born.
The dramatic history of this game does not end there, but this post does. 😉

It provides relaxation during less interesting activities (such as watching Nigeria versus Iran in the World Cup).

The programmer just got hit in the forehead by a fallen tree and could use any sympathy and support that he can get. [*]

It is FREE (for one day only)!

As promised, to celebrate this anniversary, Demolish! Pairs 1.11 is completely free for TODAY ONLY. There are no strings attached, though when you do take advantage of this special offer, it would be nice if you would rate and review it on the App Store.

Also, for those who already have the free-to-play version, Demolish! Pairs FTP 1.0.1, all in-app purchases are free for today only as well.

[*] Medical Update: The injury was not at all serious, causing no extra brain damage. 🙂

Another update to our challenging puzzle game is released.

Digital Gamecraft has published Demolish! Pairs 1.11 on the App Store, where you can buy it for only $3.99 (US). This is, of course, a free upgrade for all existing customers, downloadable from the ‘Updates’ tab on the App Store.

Demolish! Pairs 1.11 is an upgrade that simply lowers the minimum version of iOS to 5.1.1, making it (again) playable on the original iPad. For more information on the game, please visit DemolishPairs.com.

An update to our premier arcade/puzzle game is available.

Digital Gamecraft has published Demolish! Pairs 1.10 on the App Store, where you can buy it for only $3.99 (US). This is, of course, a free upgrade for all existing customers, downloadable from the ‘Updates’ tab on the App Store.

This version is our initial (and, perhaps, terminal) entry into the mobile free-to-play marketplace. We would truly like to see this fun game in the hands of as many players as possible, and if we can recoup something for our efforts (on a simple game that took more than a dozen years, during which time half of the development team died), that would be nice, too. Seriously, it is important to us to get this product as widely spread as possible for the integrity of the data/results, which I intend to (mostly) share on this blog.

Download and Enjoy… and then please Rate and Review it on the App Store!

Grizzled veteran embraces free-to-play concept.

In my last post, You Lost Me at ‘Buy’, I was ranting about a scenario that really had me down-heartened about the direction of the game (and, in particular, mobile game) industry. However, not being one to wallow, I already had a plan in motion (and development) to adapt to the changing landscape of the business I chose (back in the 80s) to be part of.

In the two months since that post, I have been working on Demolish! Pairs FTP, a free-to-play version of our latest iOS release.

In truth, the process was already underway when I made that blog post, but a comment from Joel Davis, along with an intense read of the book he recommended, Free-to-Play: Making Money from Games You Give Away, by Will Luton, caused me to revisit the (free-to-play) design from the top, with a different attitude and approach.

I ended up with a separate design document just for the free-to-play features that was longer than the design document for the game itself. I did not change anything about the actual gameplay, deciding against banner advertisements that would adversely affect the experience, and determined not to allow “pay to win” in any sense. However, I did incorporate several features into the product (interface) to allow for free-to-play, including certain (temporary) game restrictions and advertising, as well as means of playing for “free” forever (wherever time is a valueless commodity).

To be clear, I “embrace” free-to-play approximately the same way as I might embrace a great aunt who I have never met, and may never see again. Of course, if it turns out that this great aunt happens to want to enhance my income substantially, then the least I could do would be to visit more often and get to know her, and my embrace may grow sincere. It would be the polite thing to do. 🙂

In the world outside that metaphor, the new version is designed to allow, and encourage, players to give us money for the fun product we have created. However, it does not force anybody to part with money and, actually, players may not be significantly restricted until they get decent at the game. The other major drive and purpose of the free-to-play version is to get information about the market, relative to the paid version. Although the first/paid version of Demolish! Pairs did make some money, that income stream deteriorated to the point that the possibility of cannibalizing sales with a “free” version is no longer a serious risk. (A game needs to make a meaningful contribution to keeping our company in business, or it may as well be free anyway.)

So, I created this new free-to-play edition, Demolish! Pairs FTP, over the last couple of months (in addition to a whole new round of iOS solitaire game updates for Goodsol Development). The actual development time for just the FTP (which does not stand for what you think it stands for) version was 80% of the time it took to build the original iOS (paid) version of the game from the prototype. The game has been submitted to the App Store, so now we are just waiting for approval (I hope), after which we will see how the initial sales stack up against the initial sales of the paid version.

The free-to-play edition should have a much longer tail than the paid version, so when (<optimism>) this new version matches or exceeds the income of the paid version over the critical first 3 days, and then grows instead of plummeting, then my attitude will truly be changed (</optimism>). I have a very specific target in mind for iOS to be considered a successful platform for us, and I am anxious to see whether we make that goal.

I plan to write more about the free-to-play features and results once there are actual results to consider. In the meantime, you can buy (the original version of) Demolish! Pairs in the App Store, with no ads nor restrictive baggage.

Note: If we get at least 350 purchases of Demolish! Pairs 1.0 before the end of this month [October], Digital Gamecraft will donate $1000 to the Juvenile Diabetes Research Foundation, plus 50% of all net proceeds for sales beyond 350 (before November 1).

Our arcade/puzzle game has been released!

Digital Gamecraft has published Demolish! Pairs on the App Store, where you can now buy it for only $1.99 (for a limited time only).

Demolish! Pairs represents a true milestone. This is the first truly self-published title we have released in more than 23 years, and at the same time, it is the very last title on which we worked with our late friend and partner, Rick Tumanis, who did most of the artwork, and all of the sounds, for this game prior to his passing in 2011.

We are providing a limited number of free review copies to press (traditional or online) and, indeed, to the first three people who send an email to us at support@digitalgamecraft.com and tell us you read about Demolish! Pairs on this Gamecraft blog. [Editor note: Press copies are still available, but the giveaway codes are gone.]

We need people to playtest our arcade/puzzle game.

Today, Digital Gamecraft is making an open call for iOS beta testers to help us test Demolish! Pairs in preparation for its upcoming release on the Apple App Store.

Anybody with an iPad, iPhone, or iPod touch is eligible to join our team and get early access to this fun game, while helping us make it as good and solid as possible. All you have to do is play the game (and then tell us about it 🙂 ).

The spiders already have it, so it is announced.

Demolish! Pairs is an arcade/puzzle game, initially for iPad, iPhone, and iPod touch, where players remove pairs of bricks (or other blocks) and attempt to entirely clear the grid for each level. Players compete in either Arcade Mode or Zen Mode, depending whether they want a challenge against the clock or a more relaxing experience.

So just how new is the web site?It is so new… Only a couple of pages were published when Google stopped by and added it to their database (#1 for “Demolish Pairs”), caching the main page in the process. Because of that unexpectedly accelerated schedule, the number of pages that are actually ready will depend on how quickly you visit the site. 🙂

What I can say with some confidence is that there will be a call for beta testers within a few days. In the meantime, if you have any comments about or suggestions for DemolishPairs.com, they will be greatly received at webmaster@digitalgamecraft.com.